


Shakedown Run

by zinjadu



Series: Knight-Errant [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Battle, Diplomacy, Friendship, Gen, Missions, There's a plan, but then it all works out, it goes sideways
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-04
Updated: 2016-10-12
Packaged: 2018-08-19 11:34:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8204758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zinjadu/pseuds/zinjadu
Summary: After being raised to Knight-Errant, and getting some time to celebrate, Ahsoka gets her first mission as a Knight-Errant.  But the plan goes pear shaped (of course), things blow up, people get shot at, and Ahsoka has to make some hard choices.





	1. A New Beginning

Groaning, Ahsoka woke up with a headache, a bad taste in her mouth, but a smile on her face at the memory of the previous day. Cheerfully, she mentally cursed Fives until she felt like she could get up, hit the ‘fresher and get some food. That took a few minutes, considering between all her languages she knew a lot of really good curses. When she did get up, she saw the notification light on her room’s comm-station was blinking. Frowning, she levered herself up and read the message.

 

Then her face broke into a wide, eager grin again.

 

Finally! She had a mission!

 

And she got to work planning it.

 

* * *

 

Rex surveyed the troops, running a critical eye over the lot of them. They were a mix of 501st veterans and shinies straight out of Kamino, and he figured they would do nicely. He also noticed that the right shoulder armor plate of every last man of them had been painted to outline a distinctive white pattern he knew all to well.

 

Giving a quick nod of approval to Jesse and Tup, the most likely pair behind the artistry, he thought he probably should change his own colors to match.

 

After all, he had a new command now, and his new general would be along shortly.

 

Just as he was thinking that, the bay doors opened.

 

“Present arms!” Jesse called out, and every last trooper came to attention, rifle at his shoulder. Rex stood at ease, his new helmet under his arm, still unpainted after all the recent excitement. Absently, he thought he’d need to start his count all over again.

 

Then she walked through the doors, a couple of other Jedi flanking her, Generals Windu and Yoda, giving her last minute advice, and then she saw him. Her eyes widened in genuine happiness, taking in his and other familiar presences.

 

“Commander Rex of the 332nd, at your service, sir. The men are ready for inspection and shipping out,” he said, and he could see the mirth dancing in her blue eyes.

 

“I can see that, Commander,” she said easily, playing along. He hadn’t been sure, when Skywalker had asked him to take this command, how he should play it. They had been through a lot, him and his commander, but he figured she would recognize the dry humor underneath the professional words.

 

And he was right, she did.

 

“We shall leave you to brief your men as you see fit, Knight-Errant Tano,” General Windu said, and left with a quick nod to Rex, a small acknowledgement that not all Jedi gave the clone troopers. Windu, from Skywalker’s account, might be a stoic, tough barve, but he wasn’t like some of the others, the ones who didn’t see him and his brothers as people.

 

“Care, you must take. Delicate the true mission is,” General Yoda said, and that made Rex twitch a little. He didn’t like hearing the words ‘true mission’, which meant that the Jedi were playing with missions inside of missions. Rex _hated_ that.

 

“I will, Master Yoda,” Ahsoka said, bowing, and stood beside Rex as the little Master left, hobbling along with his stick.

 

“Anakin arranged this, didn’t he?” she asked, looking at him out the corner of her eyes. There was no point in denying it, so he answered honestly.

 

“Came to me three days ago, offered me the post. Said he’d rather have me as your commander than a man he didn’t know,” Rex told her, and while it struck Rex as being a little overprotective, he couldn’t fault the outcome. As hard as it had been to leave the general, Skywalker was a battle-tested sole leader. Ahsoka would benefit from having familiar people around her as she learned her new place.

 

“That’s him all over, alright,” she said, then she looked at the battalion arrayed before her. “I suppose I should actually go look them over, huh?”

 

“They’d feel disappointed if you didn’t. They worked hard to get ready for you,” he said, and she laughed.

 

“Alright, Rex, let’s go boost morale while we’re waiting on a few others to show up,” she said, and started for the nearest squad.

 

“Right behind you, General,” he said, and it felt good to call her that. She had more than earned it. Then she stopped and looked at him, just for half a heartbeat, a thoughtful expression on her face before she broke into one of her brighter grins.

 

“Never doubted that for a second, Rexter,” she said, then she waved him along. “Come on, I’ll review the troops and then I’ll fill you and our other COs in on the mission objectives.”

 

* * *

 

Ahsoka stood in the Command in Control room on board the _Adamant_ , the Republic cruiser that was under the purview of Admiral Kersos, the man who would have replaced Tarkin as her prosecutor, but had instead seen to Barriss’ sentencing. She wasn’t sure how she should feel about him. She had reviewed the trial transcripts, seeing that he had at least been fair to her one-time-friend.

 

The young Knight-Errant also tried not to feel guilty about not going to see Barriss before leaving, but that was still too difficult. Instead, she had composed a message to be delivered by the Mind Healers when they thought appropriate.

 

Mentally shaking herself, she returned her attention back to the matter at hand. The review of the troops had been easy enough, and she had been overjoyed to see Tup and Jesse with companies of their own now, both of them captains. Kix was head medic, and Fives was the 332nd’s lead ARC-trooper. She also other familiar faces, Jinx, the best gunship pilot she could ask for, and Hammer, the man with the soul and lungs of a sergeant.

 

Now, she was _leading_ this briefing. This was unlike leading the cadets on Mandalore, or helping the rebels on Onderon. This was _all_ on her. Not to advise or guide, but lead. Properly.

 

“Gentlemen,” she began, for the first time aware how _male_ these things tended to be. There were women in the Republic fleet, pilots and bridge staff, but they were few and far between.

 

“Our main mission is a clear one. Rodia is once again experiencing food shortages and its coming close famine conditions on the planet’s surface,” she said, calling up the Tyrius system and then zoomed in on the planet. “While there are no substantiated reports of Seppie activity in the sector, we’re being careful here to avoid these supplies falling in the wrong hands. There have been scatted accounts of scout ships and the planet’s defenses have been tested before.

 

“Its when we distribute the supplies, when the troopers will come into play. Rodia’s very clannish, but several of the clans are hostile to each other. We need to distribute the supplies to the clan leaders at the same time in order to prevent any a local conflict. The supplies will be most vulnerable during transport, but Rodians aren’t going to attack Republic troops, so the idea is we divide the battalion and each company directly hands over the shipment to the clan heads at the same time,” she finished, feeling fairly proud of that. It was short, clear, and made plain why they needed a Republic cruiser and a battalion of troopers for a simple humanitarian mission.

 

“Not that my captains aren’t experienced, General, but we aren’t geared for diplomatic contact, and there’s only one of you,” Rex put in.

 

“That’s where the Padawans come in,” she said, and then switched to the comms. “Quirk, send them through.” Then the door to CiC opened and three young Jedi walked in. None of them were familiar to him, one dark-skinned human girl, a skinny Barolian girl, and finally a massive Selonian.

 

“Padawans, let me introduce our Admiral, Erel Kersos,” Ahsoka began indicting the dark haired Corellian. “And of course our trooper’s COs. Commander Rex, and Captains Tup and Jesse. Gentlemen, these are our diplomatic assistants, on loan from the Temple, Padawan Tai Uzuma,” she said indicating the human girl, “Padawan Ekria,” the Barolian, “and Padawan Zonder,” she finished indicating the Selonian.

 

The Padawans bowed, and the troopers saluted.

 

“I hope we will be useful on this mission,” Padawan Zonder said, his voice a distinctive rumbling growl.

 

“I am sure you will,” Admiral Kersos said confidently, and Ahsoka’s opinion of the man ratcheted up a few notches for that kindness alone. Nodding decisively like she had seen other Jedi Generals do, Ahsoka watched as the troopers and the Padawans seemed to assess each other.

 

“Since we have a day until we reach Rodia, we’ll run through a few drills to see what Padawan goes with what company,” Ahsoka said, and she caught slight, almost imperceptible looks of approval from both Kersos and Rex. Feeling pleased that she had thought of even that detail, she felt the meeting had drawn to a close.

 

“If there are no questions at present,” she said, pausing, and when none were forth coming, she continued, “Let’s get to the cargo hold and put everyone through their paces.” As everyone filed out, she caught Rex’s eye and he hung back until he was only herself, her Commander and her Admiral. Jesse and Tup were already chatting up the Padawans, knowing a fair bit about working with young Jedi.

 

“You might both be thinking all this mission _still_ doesn’t warrant all the fuss, and you’re right. The real mission is those Padawans. They’re all… orphans, I suppose,” she said, trying not to feel heartsick for them, not even able to imagine what it would be like to lose Anakin. “With their Masters dead, and the other Jedi spread all over the galaxy, they cannot complete their training. Our job is to help give them a little more experience and evaluate them. If we all agree that they’re fit for the field, then they might be assigned to a new Master.”

 

“Not to mention that this is an almost ideal shakedown run for the new battalion,” Rex said thoughtfully, “though I can’t figure out why you’re along for the ride, Admiral.”

 

“Because I was only the Admiral of a medical fleet before now. It appears, however, my recent political activity garnered me some attention I would have, honestly, rather avoided,” Kersos said, and Ahsoka found herself really liking the man. She hoped she got to work with him like Anakin worked with Yularen, though she privately hoped that she wouldn’t scare _her_ Admiral as much as Anakin scared his.

 

“I’m glad you volunteered that information, Admiral,” Ahsoka said, “it wasn’t on the mission brief I got.” Kersos snorted, a mix of amusement and exasperation.

 

“Of course it wasn’t,” he said, shaking his head. “And, please, if we’re all going to be working together, at least when we’re not in front of the men, call me Erel.”

 

“Call me Ahsoka, then,” she said, grinning.

 

“I suppose it would be poor form to insist on my title at this point,” Rex remarked wryly, and Ahsoka laughed, which was enough to make Erel see the joke: clones had no other names but the ones they chose for themselves. There was never any question of what he would be called. The Admiral laughed, and Ahsoka thought they would all get one just fine.

 

* * *

 

It didn’t take long for Ahsoka to figure out how to assign the Padawans. She had observed them working with each company. What she hadn’t anticipated was getting grief about the assignments.

 

“This is ridiculous, why don’t I have my own company?” Tai asked hotly, and Ahsoka was presented with a choice. She could either explain her orders to Tai, or she could tell Tai to get over it and get used to it. There were downsides to either, and she tried to think of what Anakin and Obi-Wan and Plo had done.

 

“You’re in my company because we only have four companies and someone had to draw the short straw, but with you our company can loan out some squads to the others just in case,” Ahsoka said evenly, keeping her expression neutral.

 

The idea that Tai’s very presence would offset loosing a few squads seemed to cheer her slightly, though the girl still had a slightly sulky expression on her face. She hoped she had handled that well, keeping the explanation short and truthful, but not backing down from her orders either.

 

“Now that you have your assignments, I suggest you get to know the troopers in general,” she continued. “Spend some time with them, eat with them, play a few games of cards or darts. I don’t know what you were taught about the troopers, but if you’re going to be leading them into battle, you need to know who they are.”

 

“My Master… he believed much the same,” Ekria said thoughtfully.

 

“Never had much reason to be around them before, are they any different than the security forces?” Zonder asked, having spent a good deal of his time investigating crime on Coruscant after his Master’s death. Ahsoka snorted at the question.

 

“The _vod’e_ who fight are made different by fighting,” Ahsoka said, unable to keep all of the judgment about of her voice. It didn’t help that just a week ago those same security forces had tried to hunt her down.

 

“But they’re people, men, good men, and as Commanders you need to respect that and respect them. Spending time with them shows that,” Ahsoka explained, and she watched as they digested that information.

 

“Never did understand why it was so hard for some to the troopers as people,” Tai said, rolling her eyes. “But you can scream the truth at people, if they don’t want to listen, they will, right?”

 

And in spite of the irritation Ahsoka felt for Tai, she gave the girl a tight smile.

 

“Exactly,” Ahsoka agreed and dismissed the Padawans. She hoped they took her advice, because they had to see for themselves the worth of these men, and do so before some of them never came back.

 

* * *

 

After dinner and before the night-cycle, he was going over the duty rosters with his General, determined that she was _not_ going to put off administration like her former Master. Rex _liked_ Skywalker and respected the man a great deal. But stars, the man drove him mad.

 

“You know, I’m fairly certain Anakin never did any of this,” Ahsoka said, eyeing the final stack of datapads tiredly. Rex chuckled.

 

“He always said he ‘trusted me to know what was best,’” Rex said dryly. “The problem was, when I was first assigned to him, I believed it. By the time I figured out he just hated doing the work, it was too late. I was stuck.”

 

“Face it, you’d never trust him to do it right anyway,” she said with a knowing grin.

 

“Guilty,” he admitted, and he smiled back at her. It had been a good day for Rex, and those were vanishingly rare, so he was determined to enjoy it while it lasted. Even if that meant sorting out squad and company change ups to reflect who worked with whom best.

 

And, if he bothered to admit it to himself, he was enjoying his General’s company. It was something of a novelty to spend time with her when they weren’t being shot at, on the run, or nearly dying. She had done well today, setting a good tone for dealing with the Navy and demonstrating that she would lead by example.

 

He had also heard about the orders she had given the Padawans, to spend time with the troops, to know them as people not numbers.

 

Part of that was Skywalker’s influence, but Rex knew his former general had only reinforced Ahsoka’s natural tendency to care, to connect with others, and to protect the people she cared for.

 

Sometimes he wondered how that melded with Jedi teachings, as he understood them.

 

It probably didn’t.

 

“You did good today,” he said, setting down the last ‘pad, and she looked at him, chin her hands, with a wry smile on her face. He huffed. “I know you don’t need me to tell you that, just thought you’d like to know that I thought it.”

 

“I do, actually, like knowing how you think things are going,” she said, “And you know you can always tell me, right? Even if it’s something I probably don’t want to hear.”

 

“You got it, General,” he said, and she grimaced. He laughed. “Still a bit squeaky, the new title, eh?”

 

“A bit, but I suppose I better get used to it. It’s strange, but I feel like its harder to be called ‘General’ than ‘Knight-Errant’,” she said with a rueful shake of head before leaving to get some shut-eye before they jumped in system in ten hours or so. He decided to follow suit and get some sleep himself, finding himself oddly at peace, his worries all manageable, familiar ones.

 

Rex was a simple man, and with a mission and a general he respected, he couldn’t imagine a better place for a trooper to be.

 

* * *

 

Ahsoka stood on the bridge as they prepared to exit hyperspace and arrive in the Tyrius system at any moment. Next to her was Kersos, her new Admiral, and Rex stood behind her and to her right, the preferred at the ready position for every clone commander she had met.

 

“In three,” the pilot said, starting the countdown for the end of their jump. “Two, one.”

 

Then there was controlled burst of activity as they appeared in realspace, the pilots accounting for the momentum lag and bring them about to gain an orbit around Rodia. Nav&Comm stations were also active, surveying the system, gaining the lay of the land, but as the planet hove into view through the large transparent steel windows, Ahsoka didn’t need them to tell her what she could clearly see.

 

Rodia was under a Seppie blockade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the Padawans are in "legends" at least, as in Kersos. Will hopefully update once a week, because we're into "zinjadu needs to do research territory." 
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy!


	2. Change of Plans

“Well, it looks like our mission got a little more complicated,” Ahsoka said before she could stop herself, a comment worthy of a snippy Padawan and Commander. Just as she was mentally cursing herself, Kersos smirked, the smirk that all Corellians were probably born with.

 

“General Tano,” he said dryly, “what a delightful understatement. I believe we have some emergency planning to do.”

 

“What are their numbers?” she asked, and a handful of Navy officers scrambled for data.

 

“Only three cruiser-class ships,” the officer said, disbelief clouding his voice. “That doesn’t make sense…”

 

“If it was a full blockade, we’d expect at least half a dozen cruiser-class vessels,” Kersos clarified, then narrowed his eyes at all the cruisers staying put. “And I’d expect them to be scrambling fighters already. They still have us out gunned as is.”

 

“Unless the majority of their troops are on the surface,” Rex put in, “and we’re looking at an invasion not a blockade.”

 

“Still too few ships,” Ahsoka said, shaking her head, recalling what a full-scale invasion looked like. “Not to mention that if there _was_ an invasion, don’t you think Republic command would have commed us? We should have gotten a message to that affect as soon as we jumped in system, if it happened while we were in hyperspace.”

 

“So that leaves us with three cruiser-class ships, a high likelihood of ground troops, _and_ a mystery,” Kersos said with a sigh. “And here I was hoping for a nice, boring first mission. I should have known better.”

 

“It’s alright, sir,” Rex said in that monotone troopers used when they thought they were being funny, “You’ll get used to it.”

 

“We could retreat, General,” Kersos offered. “We aren’t necessarily equipped to handle… whatever this is.”

 

“The people of Rodia are starving, Admiral,” Ahsoka said, not admonishing him, but reminding him, and herself, why they were there. That there were more important things than winning battles and destroying clankers.

 

The bridge was silent for a heartbeat, and Ahsoka raced through the options she had, thinking about all the assets she had to hand, and the unknown quality of the task before her. Closing her eyes, she breathed in and out, finding the ebb and flow of the Force, not seeking out guidance, not necessarily, but feeling her way.

 

She could feel them, feel the troopers and navy soldiers on the ship, the Padawans bright spikes of the Force, and down on the planet below, the Rodians. The threads of life and future all mixed together, and though she couldn’t see the end, she got the sense that the solution was on the planet, not the ships.

 

“Evasive action, Admiral, make them think we’re running and see if we can use the moons as cover,” she said, opening her eyes. “That should give us enough time to scramble some landing parties and get to the bottom of this. I don’t want to ship supplies down until we have a clear line of descent, and as long as those cruisers are there, that’s something we won’t have. So, we’re going to make one.”

 

The Admiral blinked, apparently stunned at her laundry list of orders, but he recovered in record time. With a sharp nod, he relayed her orders to the pilots, and they started to come about.

 

“Not to countermand or doubt you, General,” Rex said softly, nearly subvocalizing, knowing that only her montrals could pick it up. “But you sure about this? Might not be worth it.”

 

“Its important for us to be here, I think,” she said, standing next to him, her voice carrying no further than his ears. He raised an eyebrow.

 

“Jedi things, then,” he said. Her grin was wry.

 

“Jedi things,” she confirmed.

 

* * *

 

The _Adamant_ hurtled toward the planet from around Enak, one of the two inner moons of Rodia. Rex stood with a squad of his brothers in the lartie, Bren at the helm, and Commander Tai standing next to him. The plan, such as it was, was that three squads and one set of ARC-Troopers would run the blockade, and each group of troopers would have a Jedi with them. Rex, due to his experience and Tai’s relative inexperience had been paired together.

 

Not that he minded, but he couldn’t say it sat easy with him, this arrangement.

 

_“What’s wrong?” Ahsoka had asked, and then smirked. “Other than the obvious.”_

_“Nothing, General,” he said, which was the truth. The division of personnel and responsibilities made sense. Commander Zonder, with his natural abilities, would be able to keep up with the ARCs, and Commander Ekria had enough experience that between her and Jesse, they would balance each other well. The General would take Tup, the youngest of the command staff, whereas he had Commander Tai, a slip of a girl who was untried by so much as an akul-hunt as Ahsoka had been._

_But then his general had given them that look, the one that she said he wasn’t telling her everything._

_“Just need to get used to not backing you up directly, is all,” he admitted. She gave him the ghost of a grin then._

_“Me too, but I guess… we both have a lot to get used to,” she said, drawing herself up, steeling herself for the drop, and he did the same._

_“I’ll manage,” he said, then straightened. “See you planetside, General.”_

 

And now here they were, the cruiser hurtling around one of Rodia’s true moons headed for the gap in Seppie coverage, and Rex heard the bay doors open and the fighter squadrons scream out of the hangar to provide cover. Rex looked down at Commander Tai, taking in her slightly apprehensive expression and barely quickened breath. The girl was nervous and rightly so, she could barely reach the handholds that were made for _vod’e_ to grab onto.

 

“Commander, hang on to one of us if you have to, it’d look bad for me if I got you bruised in a standard drop,” Rex said, couching the advice as a favor to him, a trick he had learned after years of dealing with cocky but anxious shinies. Giving him a tight smile, the girl used his arm as a brace and then drew a breath, likely centering herself the way he had seen other Jedi do.

 

Then there was the brief moment of double gravity as the lartie’s anti-grav kicked in as they rose up and out of the hangar bay, and then they were in open space, rocketing down to the surface of Rodia behind a squadron of fighter pilots. Using his command codes, he kept an eye on the pilots to track losses and positions, but those should be few as the three Seppie ships were on the other side of the planet. While Seppie fighter-droids could make up the distance quickly, it would still take time to scramble them even once they realized the _Adamant_ hadn’t turned tail and run.

 

They were just entering atmo when the fight started in earnest, the fighters that were covering their descent taking heavy fire. Rex watched as his brothers broke away from leading them down to swooping up and over the larties to fire on the Seppie droids on their tails. Then the lartie pilots gunned it, taking the descent hard and fast, making for the target landing zone, a small patch of clear space in the jungles of the Betu continent.

 

Rex also kept an eye on Commander Tai, her small form tense, but there was a calm there. Not the steady calm he had come to expect from Ahsoka, nor the focused beam of energy had always been Skywalker, but the girl was trying her Jedi best. And for that, he found himself liking the girl a bit more.

 

The planet’s gravity started to make itself felt, and the anti-grav shut off, leaving them slightly lighter for half a second. The Commander gripped his arm tightly then, and he kept himself solid for her, because he really _didn’t_ want her tossed about in the gunship like loose cargo.

 

Rex, keeping an eye on the fighter squadrons and the telemetry noticed something odd. The clankers weren’t attacking as hard and as fast as he knew they could. Frowning, he quickly scanned some of the data, seeing that they were slightly off course, the fighters scrambling to cover the rapidly descending gunships, but the gunships having to undershoot their target due to a squadron of clankers diving in from upahead.

 

“Tup, tell the General they’re driving us off course, don’t know why, but its probably nothing good,” Rex commed. Tup didn’t confirm, he simply relayed the information and didn’t turn the comm channel off.

 

And before anyone could respond, there was the distinctive echoing boom of anti-space craft mortars. Bren in the cockpit cursed and pulled up sharply, pushing the gunship to its limits, and began evasive maneuvers. They ducked and weaved around the flak-shot as the Seppie droids broke off their air attack, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire.

 

Rex’s brothers, however, were good men and wouldn’t leave their brothers to fend for themselves. They started a strafing run on the artillery position, and Rex watched as brothers, brothers he knew and ones he didn’t, ones that had never been off Kamino until two days ago, died in fiery explosions.

 

“All gunships, the pilots are going to give us cover, _do not waste it_ ,” Ahsoka’s voice came over the comms, hard and fierce. There was a rousing chorus of “Yes, sir!” and the gunship pilots put their skills to the test as they pulled up, flying over the fighters as the fighters swooped down underneath them to pull fire and return the favor.

 

Then they left the artillery position behind, descended again, damn near burning the tree tops with their exhaust as they zeroed in on the landing zone that he and the command staff had picked out. Rex, still able to see through the helmets of the pilots, saw them still engaged with the artillery, and more Seppie fighters coming down on top of them.

 

“General,” Rex commed to her on a private channel, “Reckon our boys should go home, they’ve played with their friends long enough.”

 

“Agreed,” she said on the same channel before switching over and giving the order. Rex watched as his brothers expertly broke off and scrambled back to the _Adamant_ , pushing their fighters and their bodies to the limits to make it back.

 

With only the barest jolt, they touched down. Finally, on the surface of Rodia. He checked over the biostats for his squad, finding everyone amped up but fine.   Then he looked down to get a visual on his Jedi Commander: she was a little wild around the eyes, but as she looked up at him, she gave him a sarcastic smirk.

 

“It always this exciting?” she asked, trying for dry, but he could hear the quaver.

 

“No, not always, depends on how crazy your general is,” Rex said, and then Tai’s face broke into a real grin.

 

“I’m telling Ahsoka you think she’s crazy,” the girl said. Rex shrugged.

 

“She already knows,” he said easily, and then the doors opened, the sunshine streamed in, and it was time to reconnoiter.

 

* * *

 

Ahsoka surveyed their position, just inside a small clearing in the Rodian jungle, Tup at her side. The rest of the troopers were spreading the camo-netting over the lartie and adding a few artistic touches like tree branches to keep it off Seppie scanners. Hopefully, with all the larties powered down and disguised, they had at least one way off this planet without requiring a full-scale pick-up.

 

In her experience, those lost about as many men as they saved.

 

Once she got the confirmation that all the squads were down and in position, she opened up the comm-channel that Fives and Zonder had scrambled six ways from yesterday. And they had done it under a half an hour back on the ship.

 

“Listen up troopers, we just got the confirmation we didn’t want, because if the welcome we got from the artillery is anything to go by, the Seppies are making a play for Rodia,” she said, thankful she had studied up on Rodia before they had disembarked from Coruscant. When they had finally gotten telemetry data from their all-too brief scan of the Separatist’s ship deployment, only the Betu continent had _not_ been under the blockade. However, that didn’t mean that the Chekko clan, the most powerful clan on this continent, was in league with the Seppies. She had no proof of that, and all too often the Seppies drove wedges between people or simply held people hostage to get what they wanted and have it look like an internal dispute that just so happened to fall in their favor.

 

“You can tell from how it sounded that its Seppie ordinance, Knight Tano? You sure its not Rodian?” Zonder asked, and if one wasn’t used to Selonians, the perpetual growl they spoke in would have been upsetting. But Ahsoka knew Zonder, knew his need to rely on evidence, but to use that evidence to get to the bottom of things.

 

“With the range I have on my hearing, yes,” she explained quickly, and she heard Zonder’s grunt of acceptance. Then she drew another breath.

 

“We don’t have much time, and we don’t know if we’ll get any back up, so it’s a three way race to the Chekko Enclave, that’s the only place where we can get definite answers,” she continued speaking into the comm unit she wore on her wrist. “On the way, I want Black-squad to gather as much intel as possible. I want to know the lay of the land. Push it, gentlemen, but remember to be careful around civvies. Blue-squad, to the north, Red-squad the south. Green-squad’s going up the middle.”

 

“We hear you, loud and clear, Green-leader,” Rex’s voice came over the comms, followed by a quick, “Yeah, copy that,” from Tai, who likely didn’t want to feel left out.

 

“See you there, Green-leader,” Ekria said, and Ahoska could hear the grin in the other young woman’s voice, and her faster breathing, likely a result of the adrenaline from that landing. But Ahsoka felt calm, centered, in spite of the chaos around her. She had always been able to feel Force clearly in dangerous situations, but now she was paying more attention. And that feeling of something needing to happen came back.

 

Then she heard them before she could even feel or see them, Seppie fighters, making a low sweep over their position. She whistled a sharp trill, though not nearly as high as she could go, and her troopers efficiently dived for cover, letting the fighters pass over them.

 

“This going to be interesting, General,” Tup said in his quiet, measured voice.

 

“What can I say, I just wanted to show you a good time, Tup,” she teased.

 

“General, just take me to 79’s next time,” he returned, and even though his bucket obscured his face, she knew he wasn’t even smirking as he said that. Always a bit too earnest, Tup. So she smirked for him.

 

“Let’s move out, boys,” she said, and led her squad into the jungle.

 

* * *

 

Tai really hated jungles.

 

Deserts, she could handle. Sure, sand got everywhere, but it was dry. Ocean worlds were, of course, wet and cold, but it was at least constant. Ice planets, well, one could always wear more clothes.

 

But jungles. Jungles were wet and hot and had biting insects that seemed to zero in on her because the troopers were neatly sealed up in their armor. The footing was treacherous, and the wildlife was beautiful but deadly. The only thing worse would have been a swamp.

 

It was made even worse because the clone commander, Rex, seemed to be keeping a weather eye on her. He never held a hand out to steady her, or tell her to watch her footing. No, he didn’t coddle her, but she could feel his attention, his awareness of her, tracking her progress as he followed her just behind and to the right.

 

“You should keep your eye on the tree line, Commander,” she said acidly. She knew she shouldn’t let it get to her. She knew the troopers, the commanders especially, were tasked with keeping their Jedi alive, but she would bet anything ARC-trooper Fives and Captain Jesse weren’t acting like this about Zonder or Ekria. It was, she knew, because she was young, and likely because Ahsoka had put her in the care of her most experienced trooper on the field. And because he had seen her… worry, she would call it, before the drop.

 

It rankled.

 

“Yes, sir,” he said through his helmet’s vocoder, a not-committal tone. No judgment, no irritation, no amusement. And although he had acceded to her implicit order, she got the sense she hadn’t actually won anything.

 

Gritting her teeth, she led her squad forward.

 

“Blue-leader,” Zonder’s voice came over the comm-channel, “watch yourself, I see signs of civvie activity in your path.”

 

“Thanks Black-leader, we’ll walk soft,” she said, already picking up the terms and easy usage from the troopers. She might not like Rex much, but she liked the others, especially the ones from Kamino. They were a mix of serious soldier and excitable teenager, she couldn’t help but feel some kinship with them. At least that was _one_ suggestion of Ahsoka’s she had agreed with, spending time with the troopers.

 

She relayed Zonder’s information to the rest of her squad, thankful that the Zonder and the ARCs were scouting ahead. They veered off course slightly, intending to circle around when she heard it, the rising tones of a surprised Rodian.

 

The squad turned as one, and a few of the men in the back of the group raised their blasters at the shocked Rodian civvie. He had no weapon, no way to defend himself, and likely was out just gathering things for his village, only able to surprise her because there was so much _life_ in this jungle it obscured something only a single non-Force Sensitive.

 

There was a breathless moment, and she _felt_ two of the troopers, Mel and Pep, decide to fire.

 

“No!” she cried out, drawing on the Force to jump between them and the civvie. They hesitated and looked to Rex while the Rodian ran.

 

“He’s getting away!” Pep called, clearly angry.

 

“And your Jedi Commander gave you an order,” Rex growled, “an order that follows your _General’s_ orders, trooper.”

 

“He’s going to give up our position, sir!” Mel said, defending his brother.

 

“Then we had better change our position,” Rex countered, and then he looked at her. It was her call.

 

“Move out, double time,” she said, but felt a sinking feeling in her stomach as she heard the scrambling of droid fighters in the distance.

 

* * *

 

“Green-leader,” Zonder said, comming Ahsoka. “Blue-squad ran into a civvie and now they’ve got droid fighters on their tail.” There was a brief, trilling curse on the other end of the comm.

 

“Can you get to them, Black-leader?” she asked, voice terse and tight.

 

“Already headed that way,” Fives said, breaking in.

 

“Then finish the job, Black-1,” she ordered, and Zonder could feel Fives and the other ARCs key up in anticipation of a fight. Then they were off through the jungle, the troopers keeping pace with him better than he would have thought possible.

 

“Commander, can you move faster than this?” Fives asked as they heard the bombing in the distance and saw smoke smearing across the sky. Blue-squad had closed down their comms, but Zonder could feel Tai, and he let her bright light lead him forward.

 

“I can,” Zonder said, not taking his eyes or his mind off his target.

 

“Then go, sir, we’ll catch up, and prep a route for Blue-squad,” Fives said, and that was all Zonder needed. Dropping to all fours, Zonder _moved_ , running, his powerful hind legs clearing downed trees and shallow creeks, his long arms pushing him forward, his claws leaving deep gouges in the tough bark of ancient trees.

 

Dipping into the Force, he pushed his body to go faster, faster. He could hear the fighters were screaming across the sky to the north, hounding, chasing his friend and her squad. The smell of smoke reached his nose, and he growled, making himself go faster, drawing on his reserves.

 

It was a race. Whoever got to Tai and the troopers first, won.

 

It was a race Zonder had no intention of losing.

 

* * *

 

“General, its not too far, we could go support Blue-squad,” Tup said softly, and Ahsoka was tempted, terribly, horribly tempted. To put Tai, to put Rex and his men before the mission. The mission she had changed on the spot because she had felt something in the Force and had gambled all their lives.

 

The guilt whispered at her, but she pushed it away.

 

The choice had been hers, and while she had been prepared to pay for it, she wasn’t sure if she could let others pay in her name.

 

But she had to anyway.

 

“We have to let Zonder and the ARCs try,” she answered him, “they’re more mobile. If we pull too far out of position, we risk the mission and ourselves. These men and our mission is our priority. We have to trust in the others.”

 

“I know that, sir, I know,” Tup said, and he looked off to the north, where Blue-squad was under fire. “I just…”

 

“Green-leader,” came Zonder’s breathless voice, “they’re gone. I’m sorry, I didn’t get here in time. They’re gone. I can’t… I can’t feel Tai.”

 

“Neither can I,” came Ekria’s voice, and Ahsoka could hear that the Barolian was stunned, and near sick with shock. “Ahsoka, I can’t feel Tai!”

 

“I need you both to calm down right now!” Ahsoka said, voice like a whip-crack, and she could feel them both reel at her tone, in spite of the distance between them. “I know it sounds heartless, but Black-leader, do you see any bodies?”

 

“I can’t imagine that there’d be bodies _left_ , after the ordinance that they unloaded,” Zonder growled, and she could feel his anger trickling out of him. Anger at her, at the Seppies, the Rodians, and… something else. Someone else.

 

“There should be at least armor,” she said, trying to project a calm to the Padwans that she only barely felt herself. A wild, panicked hope filled her heart. Because they couldn’t be dead. Not like this, not here, not on her watch, they _couldn’t_. And until she saw them dead, she would cling to the idea that they were alive.

 

“If there are no bodies, then there’s hope,” she went on, trying not to let Ekria’s shock creep into her. “Red-leader, you need to take some deep breaths. Red-1, look after your, Commander. Same goes for you, Black-1. Black-leader, you need to keep scouting, help us avoid more civvies.”

 

“Yes, sir,” she heard in a chorus, Zonder, Erkia, Jesse and Fives, and each one with a different tone. Jesse and Fives, they trust her, and they believed in Rex’s ability to live. But Zonder and Ekria, they needed to focus on something other than what had happened and their own reactions to it, so if they needed to be angry at her for a little while, that was fine. It might save them from making mistakes, and she had a duty to those still standing.

 

Because some small part of her mind had to accept that she had just lost a Padawan and a Commander, one a friend she had known since she had been small, another a friend who had been there for her in the darkest times. And although it broke her heart, she had a mission to finish.

 

“Tup, get the men moving, we need to finish this mission. The sooner we do, the sooner we can find the survivors,” she said, pretending to believe what she desperately hoped was true, and what she deeply feared was not.

 

“Yes, General,” Tup said, and she sensed his faith in her, and almost broke down then. Because she wasn’t sure what she had ever done to earn that kind of trust, especially with everything going wrong on a mission that was only supposed to be a shakedown run.

 

But it was a real mission now, and she was going to see it through.

 

Then she was going to tear Rodia apart to find her people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep doing this to you guys, don't I? Um. Sorry? It just makes such a good break in the flow of the story! >_>


	3. Through the Fire

Zonder heard Ahsoka’s order and almost didn’t believe it. He stood in the middle of the Rodian jungle, but barely ten meters away a swath of jungle had been reduced to ash. Likely, that was all that remained of Tai, a girl who had been his friend. Tai, and Commander Rex and all the troopers that had made up Blue-squad.

 

“Commander, we need to move,” said ARC-trooper Fives, a solid, good man. Who had just lost more brothers today. Zonder felt his hands clench into fists, an anger rising in him, something he tried hard to fight, to push away, but he could feel it clawing at his belly. He hadn’t felt Tai die, no, but he couldn’t feel her. He knew there was much that could obscure such things, and he was not sure he could trust in hope. Not right now.

 

“The others are counting on us, sir,” Fives said, his voice hard and clipped, a contrast to the Fives that Zonder had known on the ship, a joker, a prankster, a man with a glint in his eyes.

 

“Tai counted on us, and I failed her, and she died!” he roared, turning on Fives. Fives took a half step back, an unconscious human reaction to seeing a Selonian in a rage. But he still held himself well, for all that Zonder could feel his grief. Somehow, the trooper put it to the side, in a little box for later, because there was a job to do.

 

“Maybe, maybe not. Rex is a hard man to kill, but if she did die, if they all died, at least they didn’t die alone,” Fives shot back. Zonder felt his ears go flat and his eyes narrow.

 

“Is that supposed to be a comfort to me, ARC-trooper? That she had _company_ in that inferno?” Zonder snarled.

 

“It’s all the comfort we get. _Sir_ ,” Fives said, and that was like a slap in the face. Zonder put up his hands and looked away, acceding the point, trying to get control of his breathing and his anger. With an effort of will, he chained his anger and focused on the living and his duty.

 

“What do we do, ARC-trooper, if we encounter more civilians?” Zonder asked, his voice still a growl and his hackles up in spite of his returning control.

 

“We stick to orders, avoid and inform the other squads, do not engage,” Fives answered.

 

Rather than arguing with his men and wasting more precious time, Zonder grunted and moved out, expecting the ARC-troopers to follow. And for all that they had their orders, Zonder wasn’t sure he would be able to follow them.

 

* * *

 

“Commander, we need you to make the call,” Captain Jesse said to her, but her vision was narrowed, a sickness rising in her throat. Then he drew closer, standing between her and the other troopers, blocking her from their view. Though he didn’t take off his helmet, he leaned his head forward and she got the distinct impression that he was looking right at her.

 

“Ekria, you need to give the order. I’m the Captain, yeah, but you’re the Commander and the Jedi. You need to get yourself out of this and _lead_ ,” he told her, voice quiet but firm.

 

“But Tai… Commander Rex, all the men,” she said, her breath hitching as she felt herself getting worked up again.

 

“Hah,” the Captain grunted, then shook his head. “Rex has more lives than a loth-cat, and if he’s got a Jedi with him, I wouldn’t count either of them out yet. You can’t feel her, you said, but did you feel her die?”

 

She mutely shook her head.

 

“So there’s hope, and where there’s hope, we keep going forward. Always,” he said, a quiet intensity there.

 

“Because there’s no going back,” she whispered, and felt his burst of approval. Straitening, she held her head up and took a step back to present the picture of a Commander in _command_. Her troops needed that more than anything else right now.

 

“Captain, form the men up and let’s move out. We still have a lot of ground to cover and a mission to complete,” Ekria said, proud that there was no quaver in her voice.

 

“Yes, sir,” Jesse said, and she walked deeper in to the jungle, hoping against hope that her Captain was right: that they were all worried for nothing.

 

* * *

 

In the moments before the droids unleashed hell over their heads, Tai Uzuma ran. Her squad was right behind her, moving faster than humans should have been able to without the Force, but they were men born and bred for soldiering. Beside her, keeping a decent pace, was Commander Rex, likely having that extra edge from following Skywalker and Ahsoka around all the time.

 

“We need cover!” he yelled over the shrieking noise of the droid fighters. She jumped a downed log easily, and the troopers vaulted over it like they were running an obstacle course they knew well.

 

“There is no cover!” she yelled back.

 

“You’re a Jedi! Find some!” Commander Rex yelled, and just as she was about to retort (she might be a Jedi, she wasn’t a goddess, and there was no shelter, just trees and rivers that…), the jungle in front of them exploded in a fireball. Juking left, she tried to regain that thought, that thought that there was something about the water and way the jungle folded in on itself.

 

Then she felt it, something deep and dark and safe up ahead, calling to her.

 

“Caves!” she yelled, and re-doubled her efforts, head down legs pumping, the sound of droid fighters and explosions and the heavy breathing of her men in her ears.

 

Like salvation, the mouth of a cave opened up before them. It was narrow, and she had no idea how deep it went, but it would have to do. She stood at the entrance, Rex at the other side, as their men hurtled into the cave, doing their best not to cause a bottleneck.

 

Pep was the last trooper in the line, and just as he was in the entrance, she looked up through the tree tops and saw the droid fighters bearing down, soulless, pitiless scanners zeroing in on her. She could swear to hearing their weapons power up, that droning whir of a powerful laser about to fire. And she did something she had never done before. She froze.

 

Then someone grabbed her around the middle and pulled her into the cave with him, and the indignity at being _carried_ snapped her out of her shock. Quicker than ever before, she pulled on the Force and by sheer effort of will held a barrier between them and the fire. The droids hammered at the cave, causing the entrance to collapse, and the earth around them shook and the troopers danced out of the way of stray, falling rocks.

 

As the tremors died, Rex set her down.

 

“You intact, Commander?” he asked.

 

“I’m fine,” she said, waving him off, feeling her confidence return, especially since no one was making fun of her for freezing like that. “Check the men. I need to see if I can move this so we can get out.”

 

“Very good, sir,” he said, and she thought he might have been approving in his tone. She tried not to feel proud, to have his approval, and failed. Sighing, she held out her hands and closed her eyes, sensing the shape of the cave-in through the Force, trying to find a way to get them out.

 

“Damn it,” she said, dropping her hands and opening her eyes. Rex was at her side again.

 

“No serious injuries, a few scrapes and singes, but we’re mostly intact,” he reported. “And I take it that we’re stuck.”

 

“Well, we aren’t going out the way we came in, that’s for sure,” she said dryly, but frowned.

 

“You sensed these caves, though, right?” he asked, and she looked up at him, wondering how much about Jedi and the Force he knew and understood. He must have picked up something, because it wasn’t a question most would have asked.

 

“I did,” she confirmed. “They felt… safe, like they’d been used before to hide in. They… I mean, it’s just a bunch of rock, but I’ve always had a good sense for places, what they want to be. And… I think I know what you’re asking. I might be able to guide us out, but that depends on what this place has been used for in the past. We won’t know until we’re above ground or dead.”

 

Rex mulled that over for a few moments, then nodded.

 

“Been in worse spots than this,” he said, and Tai wondered what the hell he had been through that could be worse. “We’ll follow your lead, Commander.”

 

Then she noticed the other troopers had been watching their little exchange, been following their words closely. She was their only hope of getting out of here alive, and for the first time in her life, she felt the weight of what it meant to be a Jedi.

 

Tai closed her eyes again, drawing a deep breath, letting the caves speak to her, letting her mind feel the twists and turns and edges of the rock. She felt the whisper of safety, the urge to stay and hide, but there was something else, defiance, a rebellious streak, and the way out.

 

Opening her eyes, she grinned.

 

“There’s a way out,” she said, and moved through the men to the other side of the small chamber. They fell into line behind her, and they didn’t even wait on Rex’s urging to follow her this time.

 

* * *

 

They were closing in on the Chekko Enclave, and civilians were getting harder and harder to avoid. Zonder had taken to scouting ahead alone, breaking trail for the others as they had to keep to the denser parts of the jungle.

 

But the clearing he was standing in was unexpected to say the least. It was a small village in the middle of nowhere, and Zonder stared at the native Rodians as they stared at him. He thought he might be able to convince them he was some kind of wild beast, but then Fives and the other ARC-troopers came into view.

 

The Rodians went from stunned to scrambling and agitated in seconds flat.

 

“We need to tell someone!” one of them said.

 

“No, it’s not our business. Let the high ups fight, we are safe here.”

 

“We could gain favor for this.”

 

“Not telling could get us all killed!”

 

“That one’s a _monster_!”

 

Zonder really did not like being called a monster. He remembered when he had been small and the other younglings had started pulling his hair and teasing him for being different. They were in the Jedi Temple yes, but younglings didn’t know any better. The sight of his face had been enough to make others cry, but there was one who had never cried, never teased, and always told off the others.

 

 _Barriss_.

 

His friend.

 

She had told him, once, that she knew he had never been a monster: monsters wouldn’t feel as kind as he did.

  
And now the Jedi had locked her up and all but thrown away the key. He could never condone her actions, but he had not even been allowed to see her. And now Ahsoka, who had been her friend too, had ordered him to _move on_ to not search for Tai or try to find her or gain some sense of her. Ahsoka had ordered him to harden his heart and finish the mission.

 

The anger that had flared in him earlier that day burned anew, and he wanted to wade into the villagers, to keep them quiet. If they were quiet, they couldn’t report them, couldn’t reduce more squads to ash and dust. Shoulders bunching and tail twitching, he knew he could do it. He was fast, and hit hard. He didn’t need to kill them, just knock them all out, and there weren’t so many of them.

 

It would be so easy. So easy to let the rage take over, to sink down into it and give vent to everything that had happened. To let the rage take away Tai’s death, Barriss’ betrayal. Then he would be free of it, free of the simmering hurt that had been locked away inside his chest, that he had ignored until everything started to go wrong.

 

But if he did that, what was he then?

 

And there was no one to say otherwise this time. So he faced himself, and did not like what he saw.

 

“Sir, we need…” Fives started, then Zonder blew out a breath.

 

“Please,” Zonder said in Rodian, stepping forward, lowing his body slightly to seem less imposing and holding up his hands in a gesture of supplication. “Please, listen. I am not here to hurt you. _We_ are not here to hurt you. Please, listen, understand. We are only trying to help, we want to help you.”

 

The anger still burned, still simmered, but he saw a flicker of hope in the large black eyes of the Rodians closest to him, and the light of their hope his anger began to die.

 

“Help us? How?” one of the villagers demanded.

 

“The Chekko clan has made a deal with the devil, can you kill the devil?” another asked.

 

“They move us off our own land, we have to escape to the jungle to live!”

 

“Do your leaders know this?” Zonder asked, keeping his voice soft.

 

“Know? Of course they do not. They live in the Enclave, with their riches and their food, while we starve and star ships land where our houses used to be!”

 

“Would your leaders change their minds if they knew?” Zonder looked at their faces, watching them consider the possibility.

 

“Perhaps, if we speak to the old man, not his son,” one of the older villagers said. “The son is not the father.”

 

“Then that is how I can help you,” Zonder offered. “I can help you get to your clan leader, I can make sure your voice is heard, and peace can return to your lives.”

 

The villagers seemed to mull that over for a moment, conferring in low voices. Zonder decided to be polite and refused to listen in.

 

“Uh, Commander, you mind filling us in?” Fives asked, his blaster rifle held at ease, but Zonder knew it could be raised and used at a moment’s notice.

 

“These villagers might testify to their clan leader about their treatment at the hands of the Separatists. It could go some way toward resolving this peacefully, or at least without having to fight Rodians,” Zonder said, then looked away, his ears drooping.

 

“I know I did not think clearly, earlier. You have my apology, all of you, for my behavior. I try… I try not to be like that,” he said. Then Fives huffed and slapped him firmly on the shoulder.

 

“Don’t worry about it, sir, you should have seen our old general when he was in a mood,” Fives said dryly. But before Zonder could ask about Skywalker’s anger, the villagers spoke up again.

 

“We will do this if you tell us why you are willing to help,” the old villager said, staring him down. Zonder drew himself up to his full height, and let the hilts of his sabers show.

 

“Because I am a Jedi,” he said, and for the first time since the Temple bombing, he felt it.

 

* * *

 

“I know we’re supposed to be converging on the Chekko Enclave, but Ahsoka also needs information,” Ekria said, looking over the map with Jesse in a quiet moment. “We’re only a klick from Samana, and there might be something there we can use to help figure things out.”

 

“You aren’t wrong, but my men and I aren’t exactly going to blend in,” Jesse pointed out. “You, by yourself, might be overlooked, but there’s no way I’m letting you go in there by yourself.”

 

She almost let Jesse override her command. She knew what she was proposing was dangerous. Could get her killed, walking into the rancor-den. The fear still slithered in her, and it wasn’t just fear for Tai and what might have happened, but fear for herself. Losing all sense of Tai, it had been like a preview of her own death, lost and turned into nothing on a world so far from everything she had ever known.

 

The life of a Jedi was service, she knew that. Had been raised and molded to embody those ideals.

 

But when her ideals had hit the reality of war and the galaxy, she had panicked. It was not an easy thing to square, the picture she had of herself as a good Jedi, immune to fear, and the facts that she had frozen in the face of a crisis.

 

Maybe she was overcompensating now, taking too big a risk. Her thoughts started going in circles, but she could tell that her Captain, that Jesse, had noticed the silence going on a little too long.

 

“Let?” Ekria asked, trying to stall for time. She tried to find the courage inside her that she was pretending that she had for real.

 

“Commander, you’re in charge, but I’m responsible for your safety,” Jesse reminded her. “You at least need someone to go in and back you up.” And maybe the courage could come from outside, could come in armor and the knowledge that someone was relying on her to do a job.

 

And Ekria made a choice, a choice not borne out of fear, fear of possible death or failure. Instead, she made a choice to look fear in the eye and dare it to blink first.

 

“Fine, I’ll take you. We can have Hammer stay with the men and keep them ready in case we need a distraction,” she offered.

 

“Now I know how Rex feels,” Jesse muttered, and Ekria got the impression that she had not been meant to hear that.

 

“Look, the city is close, and we’ve seen droid fighters coming from that direction. It might be a base. If we can get eyes on some Seppies that’s already more than we had before. But if we can get to a computer terminal, well, maybe we can get to the bottom of what’s going on here. Then our General can have a better picture of what’s going on here,” she said quickly, trying not to stop, because if she stopped she’d start thinking again. Well, over thinking, and that way led to trouble.

 

“You now what you’re talking about right? Infiltration? Spying? You get shot on sight for that. No ‘hey you, halt,’ just blasters and open fire,” Jesse said, and she drew in a sharp breath. He was only trying to scare her, trying to shake her, to test her resolve.

 

She knew that.

 

That didn’t stop it from working.

 

But she wouldn’t give in. Fear was not going to control her, fear was not going to stop her from doing the one thing she was really good at. Tai was, _still is_ , good with the Force, Zonder a hell of a fighter and investigator, but her? She was good with computers, with systems, with teasing out the secrets that hid themselves in between lines of code.

 

“I can do this, Jesse,” she said, voice intent. It wasn’t a plea or trying to convince him, but trying to make him see. She wasn’t a delicate, sheltered Padawan. Not anymore. That had gone out the window when Zonder reported ash where Tai had been, and it was only now catching up to her what that meant.

 

“I’m a Jedi, and its damn well time I started acting like one, and a Jedi doesn’t pass by an opportunity to understand the situation,” she said, and in her head she added: _neither does a Jedi let fear stop them from doing what’s right_.

 

Jesse grunted and gave her a long, level look. Time seemed to stretch in that moment as she saw the reflection of herself in his T-visor.   She had half expected to see a scared girl, with the facial markings and blue hair of a Barolian. But instead, she saw something that surprised even her: a determined, focused Jedi Padawan.

 

“Fine, we go in. But we hightail it out the second things go sideways. Promise?” he said, because although it was phrased as a question, she knew it was the only demand he could make, as her Captain.

 

“Promise,” she said, smiling, and then she heard him sigh. Another thing she probably wasn’t supposed to hear either.

 

* * *

 

Ahsoka and her squad finally reached the gates of the Chekko Enclave, the walls of the enclave rising out of the jungle high and imposing. They were out of date for the current state of technology, but once they must have been daunting to villagers and supplicants from lesser clans.

 

But she was not either one of those.

 

Looking up at the guard towers, she could see the men training their blaster rifles on her, and she raised a white brow.

 

It had been a long, trying day.

 

Tai, Rex and all of Blue-squad were still missing. She had to believe that they were still alive, but that had been the first of a long string of upsetting instances. Zonder had seemed to drop off the face of the planet next. She could ping his location, but beyond that he had maintained strict radio silence. Then Ekria had gone off plan too, and Ahsoka was damn near done this with whole damned place.

 

Part of her just wanted to push the doors open and have done with it. But doing that without provocation would jeopardize the whole mission. Whatever that was now, considering she hadn’t been able to find any information on the way here.

 

“Tup, you wanna take a bet?” she asked lightly.

 

“Seeing as I’m not Fives, no, not really,” he answered.

 

“You’re no fun, Tup,” she teased him, giving him a grin she didn’t really feel.

 

“I know, General. I work really hard at that,” he said in a dry tone. She snorted in amusement and then returned her attention to the guards at their posts.

 

“I am Knight-Errant Ahsoka Tano of the Jedi Order, and I am here to speak to Geleg, leader of clan Chekko,” she called in Rodian, projecting her voice and throwing a little bit of Force into it. For good measure.

 

“No Jedi would come here! You lie! Go away before we blow you up!” one of them yelled.

 

“I’m not very up on my Rodian, General, but I think they didn’t believe you,” Tup said.

 

“Nope, they didn’t,” she confirmed, planting her feet and finding her place in the Force. Moving things with the Force was one of the first things younglings learned to do consciously, and really it was all a matter of _knowing_ one could do it, rather than hoping. As objects got bigger and more immobile, it required more power certainly, but it also required more _belief_.

 

And Ahsoka very much believed that she was right out of patience.

 

Stretching out her hands, she _pushed_ , not just straining on the massive gates, but putting pressure on the weakest points. She heard shouting above her, and there were a few blaster bolts fired in her general vicinity. Luckily, her _vod’e_ were there throwing up a quick shield above her. Faintly, she heard Tup ordering shields only, no return fire, and she kept pushing.

 

The doors strained against her, groaning and creaking, wanting to stay put. Doors, after all, were meant to be _closed_.

 

But she was stronger by far.

 

With a sharp twang, a cracking, and a deep thud, the doors swung open, the locking mechanism breaking under the strain of the pressure she had been exerting. However, rather than charge through the gates, she looked back up the guards, and discovered she had gathered quite the crowd.

 

“Believe me now?” she yelled.

 

She had never been shown to a leader so fast, every last functionary happy to pass on the problem as far up the ladder of power as possible.

 

In less than twenty minutes, she was standing before Geleg, an elderly Rodian, but hard eyed and shrewd for all his years. He sat easily upon a chair on a dais, his eldest son, Geldar at his side. The son looked like he’d just eaten something bitter and would rather be shooting Ahsoka and her men than talking to them. But one didn’t become an old clan leader on Rodia by accident.

 

“You broke my door,” Geleg said in Basic, speaking evenly. Ahsoka bowed.

 

“You have my apologies for that, Leader Geleg,” she said, and she was honestly a bit sorry. She might have overreacted. Just a bit. She hoped Tup wouldn’t tell too many people about that, and she might have to ply him with cake to keep that off the official report.

 

A lot of cake.

 

“I could offer the excuse that I have had a trying day, and your guards disbelief seemed to warrant… correcting,” she began, but then held up her hands to forestall whatever Geldar was about to say. “However, that is no excuse. Merely the reason. And reasons, not excuses is what I have come here to obtain, honorable leader.”

 

Geleg stared at her for a long moment, then he broke into a smile and laughed.

 

“Oh, I like you girl,” Geleg said, slapping his thigh. “You did me a favor anyway. Those guards are from my wife’s family, useless people, and now I have an excuse to get rid of them. So see, excuses can sometimes be useful.”

 

“Father, we cannot ignore this effrontery. This is why we have allied ourselves…” the younger man began, but was cut off by his fathers casual backhanded slap.

 

“No one asked you to speak,” Geleg growled, holding his son with his gaze before turning back to Ahsoka, his eyes once again alight with amusement. “Now, Knight-Errant is it? Old title that, the stuff of legends, girl. What is it you wanted so bad that you ruined my door over it? Have I mentioned that I am rather fond of that door?”

 

“You have, honored leader,” she said, her words respectful but her tone wry. Geleg seemed to be amused by her being impertinent, and since she could be impertinent in her sleep, she might as well use it to her advantage. “I ruined your door because I originally came here with a simple humanitarian mandate: distribute food to Rodia. Then I found three Separatist cruisers in orbit. We decided to run the quasi-blockade and find answers. However, all I have found thus far is implications and…” she trailed off as a functionary, wild about the eyes, slunk into the room.

 

There was a quick exchange in Rodian, too fast for Ahsoka to follow, and then Zonder was shown in, Fives and the other ARC-troopers behind him with distinct springs in their steps, along with three elderly, bedraggled Rodians.

 

Zonder bowed, and for the first time since the bombing, Ahsoka realized that Zonder had been tense the whole time. She could only see it now that he was, she thought, at peace.

 

“Revered leader Geleg, I am Padawan Zonder, of the Jedi Order, and in my efforts to reach your Enclave, I have encountered these villagers who wish to appeal to you about their treatment at the hands of the Separatists,” Zonder said, and Ahsoka felt like things were rapidly speeding toward something, something that had been in motion since they arrived in system.

 

Before Geleg could respond, another functionary entered, this time Ekria and Jesse and their squad on his heels. Ekria bowed as well before standing tall, shoulders square, a confident glint in her eye that had been missing since her Master had died before her eyes.

 

“I am Padawan Ekria, honored leader Geleg,” she said, “and I have obtained information that the Separatists are planning to annex the whole planet. They do not intend to let you rule here, honored one. They are using standard tactics of playing factions off of one another to weaken you before they swoop in.”

 

There was silence for a moment, and Ahsoka held her breath waiting for another functionary and Tai to arrive, Rex right behind her, but she still could not sense the girl.

 

“You bring me much to consider, Padawan Zonder and Padawan Ekria of the Jedi Order,” Geleg said, his eyes narrowed again. “It seems many coincidences have occurred to being you here before me at the same time.”

 

“There are no coincidences,” Ahsoka said softly, as she felt something move in the Force, something small but bright and… Her head whipped around to see a company of guardsmen approaching the receiving hall from deeper inside the Chekko clan complex.

 

And there, in the middle of the circle of guards, were Tai and Rex and all the men of Blue-squad, singed, but alive. Ahsoka felt her heart leap seeing them again, and she felt the echo of her joy in Zonder and Ekria as well. Outwardly, she let herself smile, ever so slightly, and she just caught Rex’s nod in her direction, and that told her everything she needed to know: the squad and Tai were okay.

 

“We found this lot coming through the old tunnels, revered leader,” the guard captain said. Geleg looked nearly ready to burst into a rage on the spot at all the unexpected intrusions.

 

“Don’t tell me, another Jedi Padawan? And what, child, have you found?” Geleg growled. Tai didn’t bow, instead she held our hand.

 

It was a thermal detonator.

 

“Its not armed,” Tai said over the frantic screams of some of the functionaries, “but we found crates of this stuff all around underneath the enclave as we were coming through the cave system. They can all be triggered remotely, and once you get a good slicer, I’d bet you anything that it’s set to a Seppie frequency.”

 

Geleg went from righteous anger to tired resignation in seconds flat, and if she hadn’t been watching him, she wouldn’t have believed it.

 

“It seems I have made a bad deal,” Geleg admitted. Then he looked at her, his old eyes tired, showing their age. “Too proud, it always was the curse of our clan, and it was used against us once again. They played on my pride and old grievances.” He sighed. “What would you have of me, Knight-Errant Tano?”

 

“How about we work together? We get in contact with Equator City and take back this planet, for _all_ of Rodia?” she suggested.

 

“Ha! I like it!” Geleg said, standing triumphantly. She had at least been able to give him something like a win, at least. “Son! Round up the troops. Find glory fighting droids, not our own kind!”

 

And to his credit, Geldar bowed with a clear and confident, “As you command, Father,” before departing.

 

It was all a mop up operation at that point.

 

The first order of business was to contact Kersos.

 

“Hi Admiral,” she said, sounding more chipper than she likely had any right to and then explained events and their plan. He had been silent for a full thirty seconds, and just as about Ahsoka was going to ask if he was alright, he spoke.

 

“Ah, I was warned about working with Jedi. It seems the warnings were not so nearly as outlandish as I had thought,” he said. “Very well, General, we’ll be at the ready. Kersos out.”

 

He cut the comm before she could get in a snarky reply.

 

She felt a little offended at that, but supposed he deserved to get that in, for the stress she had just put him through.

 

Then, after contacting the Rodian leadership in Equator City, they managed to drive out the Seperatists that were using the Betu continent as a staging ground, relying on a network of villagers to give away important locations. Unable to sustain any more losses, the droid ships cut and run, though not before the _Adamant_ and her fighter squadrons inflicted serious damage.

 

Once that was accomplished, they finally got to the reason for this whole disaster in the first place: distributing food and medical aid to the beleaguered citizens of Rodia. Although she didn’t get to hand out any packets herself, she contented herself with knowing that the job was in good hands with the Padawans that had been assigned to her for this mission. It also left her with time to get to the second part of this mission: evaluating said Padawans and making a recommendation for their very futures.

 

Thinking about it, she’d rather go back to trudging through the jungle under the threat of being blown up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Of course I wasn't going to kill of anyone! ... Yet. I gotta make you all like everyone first. 
> 
> I mean....
> 
> Just the Epilogue up next, so hang out for some cuteness. :)
> 
> And let me know how you like the new Padawans. Doing my best to make them all distinct. Any con-crit is welcome.


	4. Pride and Play

Ahsoka leaned back as she sent off her report and her recommendations with the trooper reports attached. One thing she had certainly not anticipated was the sheer volume of datawork a general had to do. Neither had she anticipated having to make a choice as hard as the one to leave Rex and Tai’s squad behind on Rodia, or at least not so soon.

 

Drumming her fingers on the desk, she wondered if she could go seek out Rex, like she used to do when she had been a commander. Rex had always been there for her, and although she did her best to be there for him ( _when he would let me_ , came the dry thought), she still felt like she had betrayed his trust on this mission. But she was a general now. As a commander, she had some freedom in how she behaved around the men, and although Rex had been a captain, they had a relative equality in terms of rank and duty.

 

Now, though, now it was all skewed.

 

Puffing out a breath, she stood, deciding that while it might be the case she was a general, Rex was also her friend. And friends were meant to be people you could talk to, no matter what.

 

* * *

 

“Rex, I owe you an apology,” his general said out of the blue as she slid into one of the bench seats across from him at a mess hall table. His only concession to the unexpected and unasked for statement was raising his eyebrows as he looked at her over his cup of _caf_. It was the first decent cup he’d had since getting in system, and he was determined to enjoy it.

 

Most of the 332nd had wisely avoided him, the veterans cluing the shinies in. But Ahsoka had always been an exception to his rules. And generally, she didn’t ruin his enjoyment of a cup of _caf_.

 

“For what?” he asked and then took a sip, savoring the bitter brew, but also using the time to watch her face and her lekku. Her face remained impassive, though her eyes were troubled and her lekku twitched in that frustrated way she had.

 

“I left you, you and Tai on Rodia. I made the choice to not search for you,” she said slowly, and then he knew he was looking at her like she had two heads because she looked confused at his bewilderment.

 

“General, you’re, well, a _general_. You don’t apologize for putting the mission first,” he said. “And I know you gave the order. I _approve_ of the order, even. It was the smart choice.”

 

“I’m not just your general, Rex, I’m also your friend. I’m Tai’s friend, and I’m supposed to bring these shinies through this war, not sacrifice them needlessly,” she said, a snippy tone creeping into her voice.

 

And there it was. He should have expected this. Ahsoka had always felt the deaths of the _vod’e_ , but she had never been the one ultimately responsible for them before. It was likely a large mental shift for her.

 

“Look,” she went on before he could get a word in. “I get it. I’ll put the mission first when I need to, but I know that there will be times I’ll regret doing that. And I can’t think of anything I’d regret more than… well, being the cause of a friend’s death.”

 

She sighed and stood, coming around the end of the table to put a slim, orange hand on his shoulder, on his recently repainted armor. He looked up at her, feeling more than a little stunned. Patting his shoulder, she gave him what he could only call a bittersweet smile.

 

“Just wanted you to know that, Rex, I think, to know that no matter what you’re still my friend, and I care about you, even if I have to make a call that’s bad for you,” she said, and as he watched her leave, he wondered if she knew how much that meant. How much he had needed to hear words like that, but hadn’t even known he needed it until he’d heard them.

 

And for all that she didn’t need his approval or pride in her, he was proud of her.  Proud to have a friend such as her.

 

* * *

 

They still had a little time to kill before getting back to Coruscant, and Tai was bored. She had filled out her report and now she was at loose ends. She should be meditating or something like that, but she was too keyed up. Leaving her small bunk, she wandered around the ship and stopped when she heard strange noises coming through the vents.

 

Following the noise, she eventually got to a hangar bay where everything had been cleared away. And there, in the bay, were clones playing a game almost too fast for her to follow and so random that she was fairly certain it didn’t actually have rules.

 

“Hey, Commander,” one of the men said breaking off from the group. After a second she recognized him as Mel. She smiled. He had been one of _her_ squadron, and although they had clashed, it had all come out okay.

 

“Hey, Mel,” she returned, and then eyed the game. “Don’t suppose I can play too?”

 

Mel brightened.

 

“Of course! I hear the general used to play all the time, but now she’s a general, so I guess she can’t anymore,” Mel said, shrugging. Then Tai got an idea.

 

“Give me a second, I’ll be right back. Don’t start the next game without me!” she called over her shoulder as she ran back to the main corridors of the ship.

 

“That’s not how it works!” Mel yelled after her, but she didn’t respond. She might have pulled on the Force to speed her steps, but there was no Master or full Knight around to take her to task about misuse of the Force. So she reached the doors to her friend’s room in record time.

 

And only a little out of breath.

 

Zonder and Ekrai both stuck their heads out. Zonder frowned, Ekria at least looked curious. Likely Zonder had been meditating, while Ekria had been tinkering with some computer program.

 

“The troopers are playing a game, you want in?” she asked, bouncing on her toes. “It looks like fun, and they said Ahsoka used to play. I just… look I know I can be abrasive, but I figure we all deserve some fun after _that_ mission.”

 

Ekria disappeared into her room for a second and then returned, stripped down to her workout clothes. The Barolian looked at Zonder expectantly, who sighed and followed the young women as they headed back to the hangar bay.

 

Where they promptly ran into Ahsoka. She smiled at them.

 

“Trooper ball, huh?” she asked, taking in their pace and direction. “Been a while since I played, might join you, if the boys let me. Last one there loses!”

 

And Tai wouldn’t have believed it, but Ahsoka, _Knight-Errant Tano_ , pulled on the Force to speed herself to the hangar bay. Grinning, Tai pushed herself to keep up, and consoled herself with the fact that her fellow Padawans hadn’t managed it either.

 

But then they arrived in time to see a small standoff occurring.

 

“Come on, Ahsoka, whatever team has you will have an unfair advantage now,” Fives said, leaning casually on one of his brothers. Jesse, Tai thought.

 

“Why can’t she play?” Kix, the medic, asked. “She needs the stress relief like any of us.”

 

“Fives does have a point about fairness,” Tup pointed out, and Tai was getting tired of this. But as she was about to speak up and ask for them to get over it and just play, Ahsoka grinned, crossed her arms, and surveyed her troops.

 

“What if I let the opposing team have all three Padawans?” she asked, a note of steely challenge in her voice. There was a quick huddle of troopers, _vod’e_ , Tai had learned they called themselves.

 

“Either they’re overestimating her or underestimating us,” Zonder said, shaking his head. “All three of us against her?”

 

“I know she’s good,” Ekria agreed, “but come on, there’s strength in numbers.”

 

“True,” said another trooper from behind them. Commander Rex, with this golden eyes and stoic face. Then he cracked the barest of smiles. “But there’s something to be said for knowing your team mates.”

 

Eventually it was decided that Ahsoka could play, as long as Fives’ team had the Padawans. Rex simply took the field and stood next to his general, eyes intent as Kix launched the ball into the air. And as four Jedi and over fifty clone troopers jumped, Tai felt a corresponding lightness in her heart as well.

 

Because, for all that they had just barely survived, had gone through hell, had been pushed to their limits, and would likely be pushed all the harder next time… for now, now they played like the children they all should have been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I lied. This didn't want to be the epilogue. Sheesh, brain. Get it together. =/
> 
> Promise, next bit is the last bit for this, then we're off to other adventures!


	5. Epilogue: Onward

Ekria swallowed nervously, trying to keep herself calm, her fist clenching, unclenching, clenching. She frowned, noticing the old habit. It was important, no not just important, but _necessary_ to make a good impression. After cooling her heels for only two days on Coruscant after the Rodian mission, Ekria was on a ship hurtling toward her new Master.

 

She would not let this one get hurt, not like Master He’nar, who had died, they had said with honor. He had died with blood running out of his mouth, shot to bits by droid soldiers, surrounded by the bodies of clones.

 

Seeing that, she knew, had left scars, had left her hesitant and closed off, unsure. But on Rodia she had found a part of herself again. In the eyes of the _vod’e_ , in her renewed friendship with Tai and Zonder, and in a renewed confidence in her skills as a slicer and her ability to make choices. Her ability to _not_ freeze. To look fear in the eye and not flinch.

 

But her thoughts chased each other now.

 

_What if my new Master doesn’t like me? What if I’m no good? Damaged, wrong?_

 

 _No, am stronger than my fear. My fear flows through me, and away_ , she reminded herself. _This is no different from Rodia. I must face the present, face what lies ahead. Forward, always, no going back, just like Jesse said._

 

With a breath, she steadied herself on the deck of the ship and in the Force itself. Then, before she could collect herself further, the klaxon sounding, giving her the minute warning before departure.

 

Then hangar bay doors opened, and she sank into the pilot’s seat. The Grand Army, never to let an opportunity for efficiency pass it by, doubled her assignment as a troop resupply. She was flying down a ship full of energy packs, blasters, replacement armor, medical supplies, and even rations to the surface of Felucia.

 

This, she could do. Along with slicing, she was more than a decent pilot. To be fair, all Jedi were, but something about working with the machines spoke to her, and she lost herself in the beauty of the stars and the clean appearance of the planet below her before she took it down. The landing zone was clear, and she touched down lightly.

 

With a steadying breath, she unbuckled the safety restrains and strode to hatch and depressed the opening button. As it opened, she saw a trooper standing there. He was in full armor, and a commander by his pauldron and kama, his colors a dull yellowish-brown, and a visor flipped up over his helmet.

 

Deciding she wanted to make a good impression, she walked down the ramp and came to attention in front of him and saluted, just like Jesse had taught her how to do.

 

“Padawan Ekria reporting for duty,” she said, trying to calm the voice that needled her about her new Master sending a trooper to collect her.

 

“Commander Bly of the 327th Star Corps, at your service,” he said, returning the salute, and Ekria felt a little off balance. This commander was different to the men of the 501st, though she knew she shouldn’t judge the clones like that. “The General is on her way. She sent me on ahead too…”

 

“Thank you, Bly,” came the voice of Jedi Master Aayla Secura, her beautiful face breaking into a grin. Then the Twi’lek woman turned to Ekria. “And I am glad you have found your way to us, Padawan Ekria.”

 

“I am honored that you have accepted me as your Padawan, Master Secura,” Ekria said formally, bowing. As she straightened, she saw Master Secura smiling broadly as she hadn’t been before, brow raised.

 

“Do you know why I accepted you?” the older woman asked. Ekria mutely shook her head, feeling like a mynock caught in the lights. “Because you saw a chance to improve your mission’s chance to success and took it, because you _thought_ instead of just following orders and reacting. You took initiative, you were clever and changed tactics when you needed to. These are traits all to rare, even among Jedi.” Then Secura’s expression turned wry. “Not to mention that your slicing skills will be put to good use with us.”

 

“Fastest slicer at the Temple three years running,” she boasted, feeling on solid ground with the remark about slicing. She had not expected to be told why she had been chosen. Few Padawans ever were.

 

“Then you’ll do just fine, my Padawan,” Master Secura said.

 

“Welcome to the 327th, Commander,” Commander Bly said brightly, and between those welcomes, for the first time in a while, on a world distant from everything she had ever known, Ekria felt like she had finally found the place she was always meant to be.

 

* * *

 

Zonder sat across the table from Master Kit Fisto, careful of the fine Nautolan china that rested delicately in his claws. The Jedi Master had famously declared that he would take no new Padawans, after his own had fallen and died so tragically. And since then he had constantly been on the move, providing aid to battalions where necessary, a life that most would think unsuited to teaching an apprentice Jedi.

 

“You have many questions inside of you,” Master Fisto said, smiling, his accent playing over his words. Fisto was a man of easy smiles, Zonder knew, but he had the suspicion, knowing what he did of the man’s history, that there were great depths behind those smiles.

 

“I do, Master,” Zonder said and took a sip of tea. It wasn’t bad, as far as tea went. Though he had never been overly enamored of the drink, being a carnivore. “However, the bigger question is if you will answer my smaller questions.”

 

Fisto then laughed heartily, and looked almost pleased.

 

“That is always the question, my young friend,” the Jedi Master said. “Ah, I will, so you may ask the one you must.”

 

“Why did you agree to take me on, Master Fisto?” Zonder asked plainly. Fisto’s smile turned sorrowful at the edges, though there was something like delight in his large, black eyes.

 

“You know of my failure,” Fisto began. “I lost a Padawan, and I believed the fault was mine and mine alone. And at first, I only saw the same anger in you that was in Nahdar.” Fisto let that hang for a moment, and seemed to be considering his words carefully before continuing. “It is not a difference of what is in you, I do not think. Rather, it is the choices you made. You chose to overcome your anger, young one. You sought a peaceful solution when even after you had thought a friend and companion lost. And that, more than anything, is what the Jedi are meant to be. We are become warriors when we should be peacekeepers. You, Padawan, kept the peace.

 

“In a word, I was impressed,” Fisto concluded, and took a sip of tea and smiled.

 

Zonder felt himself smiling back.

 

“I hope I continue to impress you, Master Fisto,” he said, bowing in his chair.

 

“Of that, I have no doubt, my Padawan,” Fist said, and Zonder felt a surge of hope in his chest. He had knew what Barriss had said, why she had done as she had, and he was not sure if she had been entirely wrong. But sitting across from his new Master, Zonder felt like there was a chance to show Barriss that not all hope was lost. That if _he_ could find a way back to peace, so could his old friend.

 

* * *

 

“What’re you staring at, Eye-boy?” Tai challenged, glaring up at the one-eyed clone trooper who was glaring _her_ for all he was worth. The disapproval was rolling off him waves, and Tai didn’t care for it, not one bit. And she had thought Rex’s protective tendencies were annoying.

 

“The galaxy’s tiniest Jedi, apparently,” the trooper said. “You can’t be more than fifty kilos soaking wet. What good are you going to be on the field?”

 

“Considering my new Master, _your General_ , requested me, I’ll be plenty useful,” she retorted, invading his space just a little bit more.

 

“Wolffe, please stop antagonizing my Padawan,” Master Koon said in his calm, measured voice. The trooper, Wolffe, straightened and looked like he’d been caught with his hand in the sweet-sand cookie jar. Tai smiled smugly at him.

 

“Although, it is most unbecoming for a Padawan to engage in such behavior,” Koon said, and Tai knew when she was being brought up short. “I had hoped that you two would be able to work together and learn from each other, as much as you learn from me and as I learn from you. We are, all of us, on the same side, after all.”

 

“Yes, Master Koon,” Tai said in her best admonished Padawan voice, looking down.

 

“My apologies, General, won’t happen again,” Wolffe said, standing ramrod straight and looking ahead but not at Master Koon. The Kel Dor Master shook his head and waved his hand, as though brushing away their comments.

 

“It is over and done. I suppose it could have been worse, this meeting,” Koon said, almost to himself, Tai thought. “However, if you wish to know what use she will be, Commander, you should accompany us. I very much gain a measure for your affinity for locations, my Padawan. If you would?” he asked, gesturing her to lead them on.

 

“Of course, Master Koon,” Tai said, then she paused and tried to think of all the things she had learned about the _vod’e_. Commander Wolffe was likely feeling out of place, not used to dealing with younger Jedi, and her being here likely threatened his position as the person at his general’s side.

 

“Commander Wolffe, I hope you find my ability useful. To explain it I can… get the sense of places, I suppose. I know what they’re good for, what they want to be. That could be helpful in battle, right? I could know if a location is good for defense or attack, maybe,” she offered, a kind of truce. She saw Wolffe consider her words.

 

“Could be, not that I quite understand it. Would have to see it in action, of course,” he said. “If that’s not a bother.”

 

“Not at all, Commander,” Tai said, smiling. Wolffe nodded sharply.

 

“Then lead on, Commander, let’s see what we’ve got,” he said and walked at her side, asking her questions about how her ability worked and how it might best save men’s lives. Neither of them saw Plo Koon’s pleased smile as he followed behind them, for surely fathers always wished to see their children get along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yup! Our new adorable Padawans have some of our faves as Masters now. 
> 
> Up next: snapshots of other characters before we get back to the Ahsoka show. If you have any Jedi, clone, Senator, admiral, other civilian, that you want to see. Comment and let me know! There are so many awesome characters, I don't always remember the ones I should.
> 
> Thank you again for reading and all the comments. <3


End file.
